Erasca (NASDAQ:ERAS) Trading 8.8% Higher - What's Next?

Key Points

• Shares rose 8.8% to about $9.91 on Thursday but on below‑average volume (2.34M vs. a 7.25M average); the 50‑day SMA is $15.88 and the 200‑day SMA is $9.02.
• Analyst sentiment is mostly positive (seven Buys, one Hold, two Sells) with a consensus price target of $17.88 and individual targets ranging roughly from $10 to $30.
• Insider selling occurred (20,000 and 80,000 shares in March/April, totaling about $1.61M), while insiders own 14.40% of shares and institutions hold 67.78%.

Shares of Erasca, Inc. (NASDAQ:ERAS - Get Free Report) traded up 8.8% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $9.94 and last traded at $9.9130. 2,336,487 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 7,248,150 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.11.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on ERAS. Morgan Stanley set a $10.00 target price on shares of Erasca in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Erasca from $20.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Erasca in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Erasca from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, HC Wainwright lifted their target price on shares of Erasca from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Erasca has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $17.88.

Erasca Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $15.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.28 billion, a PE ratio of -23.83 and a beta of 1.04.

Erasca (NASDAQ:ERAS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.11) by $0.01. As a group, analysts predict that Erasca, Inc. will post -0.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Erasca

In other news, insider Shannon Morris sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.04, for a total value of $300,800.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ebun Garner sold 80,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.40, for a total transaction of $1,312,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 25,076 shares in the company, valued at $411,246.40. This represents a 76.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 14.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Erasca

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Abel Hall LLC grew its position in shares of Erasca by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 16,947 shares of the company's stock worth $274,000 after buying an additional 1,265 shares during the period. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Erasca during the 1st quarter valued at about $534,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA purchased a new stake in Erasca during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,145,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Erasca by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 329,795 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,227,000 after purchasing an additional 47,770 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Erasca during the 4th quarter valued at about $112,000. 67.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Erasca Company Profile

Erasca, Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery and development of precision medicines for patients with cancer. The company focuses on small molecule therapeutics that target critical signaling pathways involved in tumor growth and survival, with a primary emphasis on inhibitors of the MAPK pathway. Erasca's approach is designed to deliver oral, targeted therapies that address both oncogene‐driven and immuno‐oncology indications, aiming to improve outcomes for patients with unmet medical needs.

Erasca's pipeline comprises multiple development candidates, including small molecule inhibitors engineered to disrupt key nodes in cancer cell signaling.

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